Something Within
by Sassy66
Summary: The Titans are brought face to face with a side of their enemy they haven't seen before. The encounter forces them to face an outcome they may not be prepared for. One Titan will risk her life to save herself and the others but at what consequence?
1. Chapter 1

Robin lay unconscious on the stone floor of the warehouse. Starfire's legs were wrapped tightly in chains as she was suspended from the ceiling upside-down. Cyborg was trapped in a force field impenetrable to his sonic blast. Beastboy was being held back tightly by multiple henchman, a collar around his neck keeping him from transforming into anything. Raven was the only hope and she was struggling to stand as Slade slowly walked towards her. Slade was becoming desperate, more unpredictable, and all-around insanely dangerous. No one knew what brought this change about the usually controlled and calculative man but it was something the Titans were not prepared for. They had come to the abandoned warehouse with intentions to disarm the missile aimed at downtown Jump City but instead found no missile but several traps and a maniac with a vengeance. Raven stood shakily, her uniform torn and her side bleeding. She clutched her injured side and tried to stay steady on her feet as unconsciousness danced around her vision.

"What are you trying to accomplish here Slade?"

"I'm just taking what I deserve." The cool voice sent shivers down her spine. This was a side of Slade she had never wanted to see. What he wanted she didn't know, none of the Titans knew his motives this time. What had they done to him? What brought out this side of him and why couldn't they defeat him?

"You-you can't win!" Raven was stumbling now, barely able to keep herself up. She stuck out one arm and conjured a wave of black energy that barely pushed the man back.

"I've already won, dear." Slade closed the distance between the two in an instant and closed his hand around Raven's neck. With a horrible fury in his eyes he tightened his grasp, lifting Raven into the air by her neck. She gasped for her, clawing at the gloved hands. Beastboy shouted her name from the side of the room, thrashing against the brutes to no avail. As the darkness surrounded her something else found its way to the surface. He eyes began to glow and a dark energy surrounded the two. In one final attempt to save herself Raven unleashed an energy that sent the two flying apart. The energy filled the entire room, blowing out the lights, shorting the force field, and effectively scaring the henchmen into running away.

Cyborg turned on the flashlight on his shoulder and saw that Slade was already gone. Beastboy had already gone to Raven so Cyborg helped get Starfire down and wake Robin. As soon as Robin came to Beastboy ran over, and unconscious Raven in his arms.

"We have to get back to the tower, now!"

* * *

Beastboy wasn't sure how to describe the feelings inside him right now but he knew for sure he was afraid. Raven now lay on the medical table in the Titan's infirmary while Cyborg looked her over. Beastboy could hardly look at her in this state. Her neck was bruised, her side cut open, and Beastboy though for an instant when he first got to her that she might be dead. Cyborg assured Beastboy she was alive but didn't elaborate on her condition. Beastboy watched anxiously as Cyborg stitched up her side and continued to eye the readouts on the machines she was hooked up to. Once she was officially cleaned up Cyborg checked over the other Titans for any minor injuries.

"She was knocked out from the pain but I think she'll be okay. Whatever she did saved her life. She should come to in an hour." Cyborg checked over all of the data once more before leaving the med bay with Robin and Starfire. Beastboy stayed to ensure she was safe.

* * *

It was dark but she was vaguely aware of something stirring inside of her. Raven knew she was still unconscious but at the same time, she was conscious. Memories came flooding back of the events that had occurred. Slade, the menacing threat, his intentions to kill her. She couldn't remember facing anyone or anything that scary before. She was fully prepared to die but something inside her wouldn't let that happen. He knew that _thing_ , that force that saved her was not necessarily good either. It was some dark part of her that had been hidden away deep within herself and she had let it escape in order to save herself. She knew it was her only option but now that force brought to the surface and she was afraid it would change her. She was afraid it would take over. She had no other option though, right? Now she would just have to find a way to suppress it once again or… well she wasn't sure what it would do to her. She certainly didn't want to find out.

* * *

 **A/N: Hi friends, it's been a while since I've put anything out here and I apologize for that. I've been wanting to get back into writing and I have a lot of ideas swimming around my head but can't seem to turn them into anything. I figured I'd put this snippet out here for you guys and see if you like it and if I should continue it. I have several other ideas including adding to my story "Letting Go for a Night" but I kind of like that one as a oneshot. I'm working on turning my ideas into actual content so hopefully I can get something out her soon but for now you'll have to enjoy (or not enjoy) this little piece I put together. It's not well thought-out but I wanted to put this idea out there so let me know if you think I should develop it some. I'm also working on cleaning up my deviantart account and uploading some of the Teen Titans fanart so I will most likely include a link to that in my bio within a couple weeks.**


	2. Chapter 2

Robin paced furiously in the living room as Cyborg and Starfire watched from the couch. It had been over an hour since the Titans made it back to the tour and Robin had been pacing the entire time. The other two were afraid to say anything so they simply watched. His pacing stopped at the sound of the doors sliding open. Beastboy walked in, Raven with one arm around his shoulder as he helped support her walking. She looked bad but she was alive. The pair sat down on the couch and focused on Robin who now faced his teammates.

"Something very bad could have happened today, team. We almost lost one of our own because we were not prepared for this fight. Slade has changed. I don't know why but I intend to find out so we can prepare to face him again. I don't want to come that close to tragedy ever again. We need to train harder and we need to understand our enemy. I'm going to the lab to see if I can find any cause to Slade's change in behavior. In the meantime I expect the rest of you to rest, we'll pick up training immediately after breakfast tomorrow morning." With that Robin left the room and headed down to the crime lab.

He sat down in front of the large computer screen in the lab. After signing on to the Titan's database he immediately began to look for records of the warehouse in which they fought Slade. It didn't take long for him to find surveillance footage of the warehouse that was automatically uploaded to a security database. He easily overrode the system and began to search through the surveillance files, not having to look very hard to find the recent footage of the fight. He would have to remember to thank Bruce for the updated technology for Titan's tower. It allowed him access to several police and secure databases in Jump City that made his research significantly easier.

Robin played the footage a few times through, pausing at specific moments and watching them at half speed. He took note of a few stills he would have to review multiple times. Robin was so caught up in his work he didn't hear the door open to the lab and wasn't aware of another presence until she placed a hand on his shoulder.

"Robin? Are you doing well?" Starfire stood tall behind the Boy Wonder and watched as he played through a few more shots.

"I'm fine. I think I'm getting something here."

"Oh that is wonderful news!" Starfire couldn't help the optimism even in the darkest situations. Robin paused one of the stills and played it over again at half speed for Starfire to watch.

"See the way he attacks me? He's used that move before to knock me off my feet. It's a good move if you're not expecting it. See how he falters here though?" Robin pointed to a particular moment on the screen, Starfire attempting to see what Robin saw. "A careless mistake, one he would never make, especially on a move he knows so well. And the way he makes up for it? An aggressive lunge that's very uncharacteristic of him. He's one of the deadliest assassins in the world and his demeanor is very cool and collective. Every move is thought out before he does it but this fight it doesn't seem like he's as calculative. It almost looks like he's desperate which is very unlike him. I don't know what's made him this way…"

"I do recall when he engaged in battle with Raven that he stated he was 'taking what he deserves.' Could this mean something?"

"I don't know Star… it sounds like he wants revenge, but for what? After re-watching the fight it's clear he was taking the rest of us out to get to Raven so whatever revenge he thinks he deserves has to do with her." Robin was stumped at the moment and sat back in the chair letting the gears in his mind process everything he had discovered.

"Dinner is almost ready friend Robin, you will come eat?"

"Yeah I'll be up in a bit Star." Robin listened as Starfire walked out of the darkened crime lab. Robin spun the chair around slowly, eyeing the various newspaper clippings he had posted to the wall. ' _Control Freak Visits Comic Con, No Danger Ensues.' 'Teen Titans East: Sexier than the Teen Titans?' 'Dr. Light Easily Shut Down by Darkest Titan.' 'Death of Titan Leaves Many Confused.'_ Robin stopped at the last article, something about it catching his attention. He pulled the article down to read it. In the center of the article was a large black and white picture of a smiling Jericho.

" _It was reported last Monday that a little-known Titan, Jericho, was killed in an intense battle against the villain known as Slade. The Teen Titans were present for the fight but were unable to rescue the young Titan. Little is known about the Titan, a recluse who is often found residing in the Tibetan Mountains. It is unknown what brought him to Jump City but his visit was clearly cut short by tragic events."_

The article was from roughly a month ago but the wounds were made fresh by reading the article. Robin was still devastated over the loss of one of the honorary Titans, a Titan he felt he never really got to know. He never did figure out what brought Jericho to jump city, the kid was very mysterious though very cheerful in his own right. Communicating was always difficult but he was glad to see him when he showed up at the Titan's doorstep. The battle with Slade was unexpected and the death of Jericho was a shock to the Titans. Slade disappeared after the murder of Jericho and the Titans were not able to track him down until today's events. Robin was certain Jericho's death had something to do with the change in Slade.

Robin made his way up to the main floor to eat dinner with his team. All of them were already sitting at the table, waiting for Robin. Cyborg passed out hamburgers for everyone to eat and a soy burger for Beastboy. The Titans ate in silence, everyone still in shock over today's events. Even Beastboy seemed at a loss of something to say. After finishing his food Robin decided to share his findings with the team.

"I wasn't able to find much information on Slade's change in behavior but I think I may have found a lead. Jericho might be the connection between his behavior change and need for revenge. That was the last time we'd seen Slade before today and I'm certain there's a relation there, I just don't know what yet. Why would Slade change after that?" The team was silent, possible thinking over the past events with Jericho and Slade, a memory they weren't particularly excited to revisit.

"Perhaps he has not… _killed_ anyone before that day? He has become upset because of that?" Starfire attempted to help but only added to Robin's puzzlement.

"It's a possibility… I'm going to have to do some more research. I think we should all call it an early tonight though team." Robin stood and deposited his plate in the sink. The rest of the team made their way to their rooms, no one in the mood for socialization tonight.

 **A/N: Another short chapter, I just wanted to get this one out there. I'm starting to develop ideas and I think I have an idea of where this story is going to go. I might even end up changing my original plan but I will try to include that for the sake of my description. I'm borrowing ideas from the original comics so *spoiler alert* if you've ever read The Teen Titans comic from the 70s/80s or even have a general knowledge of Teen Titans lore then you might start to understand where I'm going with this story. I promise to put my own twist on it of course.**

 **I apologize in advance because I think updates are going to become very sporadic. My work load has increased a lot this year not to mention trying to hold a job and still maintain a social life leaves me little time for writing. I promise to do my best though and I think I want to finish this story if possible! Thank you so much for taking the time to read my story, for all the favorites and follows, and for the general interest! It means a lot!**


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